Cody Cothron, of Sunspot, cleans up trash from the median during a Cumberland Avenue Cleanup event in Knoxville, Tennessee on Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) teamed with Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the City of Knoxville to clean up the Cumberland Ave thoroughfare.(Photo: Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel)Buy Photo

City Council member Stephanie Welch cleans up trash from the sidewalk during a Cumberland Avenue Cleanup event in Knoxville, Tennessee on Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) teamed with Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the City of Knoxville to clean up the Cumberland Ave thoroughfare. Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel

A volunteer during a Cumberland Avenue Cleanup event in Knoxville, Tennessee on Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) teamed with Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the City of Knoxville to clean up the Cumberland Ave thoroughfare. Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel

Volunteers clean trash along the sidewalk during a Cumberland Avenue Cleanup event in Knoxville, Tennessee on Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) teamed with Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the City of Knoxville to clean up the Cumberland Ave thoroughfare. Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel

Kristen Evans cleans up a flowerbed during a Cumberland Avenue Cleanup event in Knoxville, Tennessee on Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) teamed with Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the City of Knoxville to clean up the Cumberland Ave thoroughfare. Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel

A volunteer cleans up trash outside of Regions Bank during a Cumberland Avenue Cleanup event in Knoxville, Tennessee on Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) teamed with Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the City of Knoxville to clean up the Cumberland Ave thoroughfare. Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel

Volunteers arrive during a Cumberland Avenue Cleanup event in Knoxville, Tennessee on Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) teamed with Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the City of Knoxville to clean up the Cumberland Ave thoroughfare. Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel

City Council member Stephanie Welch speaks during a Cumberland Avenue Cleanup event in Knoxville, Tennessee on Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) teamed with Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the City of Knoxville to clean up the Cumberland Ave thoroughfare. Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel

Cody Cothron, of Sunspot, cleans up trash from the median during a Cumberland Avenue Cleanup event in Knoxville, Tennessee on Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) teamed with Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the City of Knoxville to clean up the Cumberland Ave thoroughfare. Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel

Heather Fawver, of Visit Knoxville, cleans up trash from under a tree during a Cumberland Avenue Cleanup event in Knoxville, Tennessee on Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) teamed with Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the City of Knoxville to clean up the Cumberland Ave thoroughfare. Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel

Volunteers clean up trash during a Cumberland Avenue Cleanup event in Knoxville, Tennessee on Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) teamed with Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the City of Knoxville to clean up the Cumberland Ave thoroughfare. Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel

Latonya Gray, from the Hilton Garden Inn, cleans up an alleyway during a Cumberland Avenue Cleanup event in Knoxville, Tennessee on Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) teamed with Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the City of Knoxville to clean up the Cumberland Ave thoroughfare. Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel

Bobby Fricks and Brenda Herron, from Copper Cellar, clean up trash from the sidewalk during a Cumberland Avenue Cleanup event in Knoxville, Tennessee on Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) teamed with Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the City of Knoxville to clean up the Cumberland Ave thoroughfare. Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel

Rashell Holley, from the Hilton Garden Inn, cleans up trash during a Cumberland Avenue Cleanup event in Knoxville, Tennessee on Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) teamed with Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the City of Knoxville to clean up the Cumberland Ave thoroughfare. Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel

Heather Fawver, from Visit Knoxville, cleans up trash from a flowerbed with Maria Beckham during a Cumberland Avenue Cleanup event in Knoxville, Tennessee on Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) teamed with Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the City of Knoxville to clean up the Cumberland Ave thoroughfare. Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel

Volunteers clean trash during a Cumberland Avenue Cleanup event in Knoxville, Tennessee on Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) teamed with Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the City of Knoxville to clean up the Cumberland Ave thoroughfare. Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel

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Wallace worked with CAMA President Joe Burger and KKB to organize the cleanup event after noticing trash getting caught in the greenery along the median.

“We want people to know and appreciate how much we have put into this street.” Wallace said.

City Councilwoman Stephanie Welch also helped gather members of the community for the cleanup.

“Us being here this morning demonstrates how important it is that we keep people coming to Cumberland,” Welch said.

#CAMACares begins to keep Cumberland clean

Tuesday's highway cleanup was a first for Cumberland Avenue, but CAMA is making sure that it’s not the last. They kicked off their social media campaign “#CAMACares.” Merchants on Cumberland have pledged to spend about 10 minutes each day picking up trash around their businesses and then post their mini-cleanup on social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the hashtag.

“This is the first step in our campaign to keep Cumberland clean,” said Burger, who owns the McDonald’s on Cumberland Avenue. “If we all can do that, we can see a big impact here.”

Other business owners agree that merchants play a role in keeping the area clean.

“It’s important to give back to the community. We have to in order to keep Cumberland Avenue clean,” said Marcedes Schindler, the general manager of the Hilton Garden Inn off of Cumberland Avenue.

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Heather Fawver, from Visit Knoxville, cleans up trash from a flowerbed with Maria Beckham during a Cumberland Avenue Cleanup event in Knoxville, Tennessee on Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) teamed with Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the City of Knoxville to clean up the Cumberland Ave thoroughfare.(Photo: Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel)

How Cumberland Avenue cleanup benefits Knoxville

The Cumberland Avenue cleanup benefits more than just business owners. Cleanups like this also prevent trash from entering the water treatment system.

From July 2016 to August 2017, the water quality treatment unit removed about one cubic yard of “floatables,” which is mostly trash, from the stormwater runoff within the new section of Cumberland Avenue and part of Fort Sanders, preventing these pollutants from entering Third Creek. That is about 10 wheelbarrows full of trash.

“The new Cumberland Avenue water quality treatment unit does a great job at helping prevent trash and debris from washing into Third Creek, but the device has limitations and can’t get it all,” said Chris Howley, the City of Knoxville’s stormwater engineering chief. “It really takes community effort in using the trash cans and cleaning up trash on the sidewalk, so that it won’t wash down the drain and end up in the creek and river.”

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Rashell Holley, from the Hilton Garden Inn, cleans up trash during a Cumberland Avenue Cleanup event in Knoxville, Tennessee on Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) teamed with Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the City of Knoxville to clean up the Cumberland Ave thoroughfare.(Photo: Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel)

Since July 2017, KKB has hosted or supported 11 Fort Sanders/UT Campus area cleanups that collected about 3,000 pounds of litter with more than 500 pounds of that litter recycled.

With the support of business owners and the city, Cumberland Avenue will continue to be a clean, safe and pedestrian-friendly area, officials said.

“This event shows that the City of Knoxville is committed to environmental sustainability,” Welch said.